The annoying purchase advice thread

tonton

It might be a little early to be asking about this, but assuming I don't lose my job, I'll probably be getting a new computer in three months or so. Right now, I'm considering either a PowerBook, iBook or iMac G5.



My top of the line choice is the 17" PowerBook.



Initial Purchase:

Stock Config (17") $2800 + 5400 RPM HD $50 + 128MB VRAM $100 + 1GB 3rd party Ram $400

$3300



My second choice is the 15" 1.33 PowerBook.

Initial purchase:

Stock config (15" 1.33) $2000 + SuperDrive $200 + 1GB 3rd party RAM $400

$2600



My mid-range choice would be the 17" iMac. I'd mount it on a VESA arm on the wall, and use a BT mouse and keyboard.

Initial purchase:

Stock config $1500 + BT Bundle $100 + 1GB 3rd party RAM $250 + VESA fully adjustible wall mount arm $300(?)

$2150



My low-cost choice is the iBook. If I go for iBook, I'll wait until the next update and then get the 12". The 14" is just too big, and the screen makes no difference to me, because it's the same freaking resolution as the 12". At the same resolution I'd rather have smaller dots and a smaller laptop. The only reason I'd go for a larger laptop is if I get more pixels.

Initial purchase:

Stock config (12" 1.0) $1100 + BT $50 + 60GB 3rd party HD $100 + 1GB 3rd party RAM $300

$1500



Right now I'm leaning toward either the high or low cost options (17" PowerBook or 12" iBook).



I don't do much graphics work these days, so speed is not THAT much of a concern. I realize the iMac will blow the others away in terms of performance. The SuperDrive would be nice, and a reason NOT to get the iBook, but I really don't do much work with video (I don't even have a DV cam).



I know the iBook is by far the slowest of the bunch, and the graphics card can't handle most new games, but it'sll still be loads faster than my current 400MHz Rev A PowerBook G4.



Q: Does the current iBook still have a video spanning hack?



What do you guys think about my choices? Keep in mind space is a top concern. There's no way I'll buy a G5 tower.

justy

If you must purchase something right now I'd go with a PowerBook 15" (w/ a backlit keybard). It offers both portability and performance at a great price. At this point computers are powerful enough if your not going to be using them for heavy graphics design, video production, and some of the games it should be just fine. Even light gfx design and web design would be quite easily done with apples current line up (stay with the fastest G4 you can get but the every G5 chip can handle those tasks no problemo).



P.S. I've been without my iBook G3 for about 3 weeks and have been stuck (if you can that stuck using a G5 then it's a damn happy one! ) with my PowerMac G5 and it's 23" display, it has spoiled me. My iBook G3 feels like an ancient computer but in reality it's not even a year old yet!



If something doesn't make sense, it's because I've been awake for far to long and my eyes wont stay open.

talksense101

iMac G5 should suit your requirement

gon

When I bought a Mac early in the summer, my choices were almost your 2) and 4). I thought the Powerbooks were far overpriced considering processor speed. On the other hand, I did not want to be limited by the iBook's lack of DVI, because I knew that with a 12" screen I would want a flat display and soon. I wanted screen spanning. I knew the iBook could probably be hacked to do screen spanning, but there was a definite "what if" in the back of my head. That affected my decision even if the techie in me doesn't want to admit it.



What I had available:

19" CRT, USB mouse, desktop PC that I'm building into a server



What I got:

15" 1.33 Combo Powerbook, stock configuration (bought 512MB more memory later)



What I could have got as well:

12" iBook, 512MB more memory, Bluetooth. The iBook would have *needed* an external screen and keyboard to be usable. I really did not like the screen quality and 1024x768 is too small to work in on a desk, but I had the CRT already so that would not have been a problem.



What you already have, and plan to have, really affects what you should buy. I would certainly *not* like the 17" Powerbook, the stuff it has over 15" Combo is not at all necessary for me, and the bigger size would be a minus. Low end iMac and Powermac would have been good, but desk bound. The iBook would have saved a lot, and I still think that would have been a very good choice as well, but I do all my organizing on the Mac. I want the screen space. Despite what I thought initially when buying, I don't see myself plugging the laptop into an external screen frequently. If I was getting a Mac desktop at some point, it would have been OK to get the iBook initially, but my next desktop will be a dedicated gaming PC, and for that reason I think the 15" PB was the better choice.



Hope this helps. If it doesn, at least writing this down cleared my past decisions to myself

gon

One more thing: storage. It makes sense to store things on a server if you can, instead of upgrading a laptop HD, burning CD's and DVD's. If you get a laptop, are you keeping your old desktop? Can that serve files? Do you need much storage space in the first place?



If you could go without, it doesn't sound like Superdrive is worth $200 for you.



Your whole thought process here is much like mine was, especially the pixel count as primary deciding factor in laptops

objra10

I had been debating for a while whether or not I wanted to upgrade from my 15" TiBook (800Mhz).



Well, today I finally did. What I got...



15" 1.5Ghz 1GB DDR RAM, 80GB 5400RPM Hard drive, and a 20" Cinema Display.....



i've only had about 3 hours to use it so far, but let me say that this is the absolute best comuting set-up I've ever been fortunate enough to use... and it's mine!

gon

Quote:

Originally posted by tonton

The difference between the 15" backlit PowerBook 1.5 and the 17" is worth a lot more than $200 to me. That extra screen real-estate would be awesome, and the "wow" image of the 17" is a factor as well. I really don't think I'd go for the 15 over the 17 at such a similar price.

If the difference was just $200, by all means pick the 17". But the difference between low end 15" and the 17" base configurations is $800 (doesn't change when you add x amount of memory to both), and IMHO that is *not* worth it unless you really appreciate all the features.



Speed: almost 15% faster! Yay! Assuming the software is processor speed (not bus) bound, on a good day this might be over perception threshold...



Screen: this I find the only good reason for getting the 17".



Superdrive: some need this, some don't, can be added to the low end 15" if necessary.



Backlit keyboard: "cool" feature, maybe useful if you can't type, not useful if you can type. I'd pay 20EUR just for the looks, they ask 50EUR, no deal. I think Apple will put it in all 15":s and possibly to all 12"s by next update, since it costs next to nothing to make.



128MB video RAM: does not show speed improvement in any benchmark I've seen. Useless, and you even have to pay extra in the 17" to get it.



Personally, I find $800 a little steep when the only real improvements are screen and Superdrive.

bnoyhtuawb

Either 17" (if you do serious work on the road, not just mail and web) or a 12" PB with a huge external screen (e. g. a hp L2335).